Unilever GlobalChange location
The UK football season kicks off this Saturday, 12 August. And it’s not just fresh kit and new players that are making the headlines.
This week, Unilever’s Dirt Is Good laundry brands announced a two-year deal with world-renowned Premier League side, Arsenal Football Club.
The move will see the brands (known as OMO, Persil, Surf Excel, Breeze, Rinso, Ala or Skip, depending on where you are in the world) become the official partner of Arsenal men’s and women’s teams.
“This is the first time Arsenal has had a fabric care partner and is a further sign of Arsenal’s commercial strength and global appeal,” says Arsenal’s Chief Commercial Officer, Juliet Slot.
Both the Unilever laundry brands and the North London football club share a commitment to delivering peak performance. Arsenal delivers through its global reach and performance on pitch. And the Dirt Is Good laundry brands’ ability to provide superior cleaning even in quick cold washes not only makes them a brand favourite in 800 million households globally but also the perfect partner to get home and away kits back to their best after match day celebrations.
Beyond the Premier League games, the partnership is keen to work with the Arsenal Foundation and local community projects to get younger generations mucking in and enjoying grassroots sports and football, not just as a physical activity but as one that positively supports mental health and wellbeing.
To help with this ambition, 21-year-old Arsenal forward, Bukayo Saka will become a global ambassador for Dirt Is Good and work with younger people, sharing the story of his journey into the profession.
It’s a role close to his heart. “I have been at Arsenal since I was eight years old and I know just how important football and sport have been for my development as a person,” he says.
“I want more young people to have the chance to follow in my footsteps and experience the power and joy of sport in communities across the world.”
With both brands at the top of their game, the partnership shows the promise of a perfect match.
“We’re proud to be working with a club that shares the same values around inclusivity and community,” says Tatiana Lindenberg, Vice-President of Marketing for Dirt Is Good. “And we can’t wait to kick off our relationship with Bukayo Saka.”
“We are keen to encourage kids to get outside, get stuck in and get dirty, seeing the benefits both on and off the pitch,” she adds.
“Partnering with Arsenal, one of the world's biggest football clubs, will help amplify this message and the value of sport to fuel resilience, determination and personal growth.”
Unilever brands Dirt Is Good (known as Persil in the UK) and Robijn are bringing laundry sheets to the mass market for the first time. And true to our Clean Future strategy, we’ve added innovative fragrance technology to this ultra-convenient, sustainable format.
In some 500 million households across the world, you’ll find a product from our Dirt Is Good brand: a level of penetration that has sales topping €4 billion a year. Proving that you can grow a brand to be powerful, purposeful and profitable.
OMO, Persil, Skip, Surf Excel, Breeze, Rinso: Unilever’s billion-euro laundry detergent family may be known by different names around the world, but they are all united by two things: the commitment to getting clothes clean and the belief that messy play is good. Here’s a master class on Unilever’s Dirt Is Good master brand.